A Destined Romance
by moonie44foreternity
Summary: Everything happenes for a reason, and despite the tough and selfcentered exterior of Shannon Rutherford lies the heart of a woman who is frightened, in need of rescue, and desperate to find her soulmate. Stranded on an island in the middle of nowhere with


Disclaimer: I do not own Lost. JJ Abrams does. I'd love to receive feedback.

A Destined Romance

Chapter 1 : A Special Massage On The Beach...

Jan Sanders, dressed only in pants and with absolutely nothing on that covered  
his upperpart of his body, was trying to do everything he could and that was demandable  
from his physical and mental strength of his body to help the survivors of the plane  
crash. As he kept walking back and forth along the beach, he couldn't help but think that  
there would be a time when he'd just couldn't take it anymore... and start yelling or  
saying something to this girl that was just tanning as if it was just an ordinary day at the  
beach. I think her name is Shannon...? Jan thought.

Shannon watched the others running, panicking, and generally freaking out about the  
plane crash. Initially she had stood there and just screamed, but she quickly tired of that.  
Shannon looked around her and realized the sun was shining, the beach was gorgeous,  
and since there would be a rescue boat soon enough, why not relax, enjoy the scenery and  
take in some sun? She watched as a good looking and well built man drove himself nuts  
moving things and such, but Shannon didn't see much of a point to it. So instead she had  
searched through the luggage on the beach, found her bag and slipped into her bikini.  
She lay on the beach tanning, her eyes constantly straggling over to get a better look at  
that guy. Finally, it seemed like he caught her eye, and she shouted over to him, "I don't  
see why you bother. The rescue party can figure all this out when the rescue boat comes."

That… was the last straw. For Jan Sanders. He couldn't take it anymore! "You THINK a  
rescue boat just comes out of nowhere! This isn't an ordinary day at the beach you know!"  
he felt the sweat drops flush down his body from his forehead as he lost it completely to  
this girl Shannon. "You might want to give everyone a hand in this other than just laying  
there looking... so..." Jan trailed off. He wanted to say slutty, but managed to keep it to  
himself. She does have a good figure though... Jan thought as he then continued to contribute.

"Of course the rescue boat's on it's way! You think they don't know where we are? I'm  
sure they have GSP, or whatever that's called, on the plane and they're probably halfway  
here by now," she said, snotty and angrily, then flopping back down on her back, shutting  
her eyes, enjoying the feel of the warm sun on her skin. She sighed, and added, "Do whatever you want. I was just trying to help you out." Throughout all this, Shannon still  
hadn't moved to lift a finger.

"For your information, it's GPS. Global Positioning System." Jan Sanders explained to her.  
"You were trying to help me? By saying that all this futile and a waste of time?" Maybe in  
her dictionary that qualifies as helping. Jan thought. Jan sighed. "Do you need some  
sunscreen on your back?" Least then I'm still doing something... Jan added to his  
thoughts as he kept looking at this wonderful girl that seemed so capable of  
helping out.

"GPS, then. Excuse me Mr. Know it All," she said in a snotty tone of voice. Who did this  
guy think he was, making her out to be the bad guy for not helping? Why should she?  
"Now THAT would be helpful," said rolling over and tossing a bottle of sunscreen at his  
feet, "A massage might be nice while you're at it." Some people might think this was  
pushing it, but Shannon Rutherford never saw anything that way. It was always about her-  
what she wanted, what she needed, and right now, she was a little bit tense.

Jan didn't show any emotion as she said her little thing. Am I too much of a Mr. Know it  
All? Jan couldn't help but wonder as he got closer to her after picking up the sunscreen  
that had been thrown at his feet by the female in question of a massage... his kneecaps  
touched the sand as he got down on his knees. He opened the lid of the sunscreen  
bottle.Again a thought crept in his mind. Put a bit on my hand first and then rub her  
with it, or just squirt it on her and then rub it out? Jan thought. After a short battle  
with his mind which decision was the best, Jan Sanders finally chose to... execute the former.  
So Jan squirted some sunscreen on his hand and then rubbed it out on Shannon's handsome back."Good enough, Miss Cleopatra 2005?" Jan asked.

"Oh, please," said Shannon, in reference to his comment. "Nobody's forcing you. If you  
want to be humanitarian of the century, keep working yourself to death. Like I said, it  
won't matter anyway." Shannon didn't want to admit that his his hands felt good on her  
back. She almost asked if he did this for a living, back wherever he was from, but she  
didn't want to seem interested. "A little to the left," she said with an attitude that showed  
absolutely no gratitude, only a desire to be served.

"Check." Jan said to her and moved his hands a little to the left. If only she knew what  
kind of work Jan did in real life... then again, THIS was the harsh reality he found himself  
living in these days. The work in the massage salon seemed a lifetime ago. . . "I'm Jan by  
the way." he said in a whisper. Why am I whispering? Am I.. trying to seduce her? Jan  
suddenly thought. The feel of pulling his hands away from her back was appealing... but  
the man didn't do it.

"Shannon," she replied, her voice sounding as if his name didn't really matter to her, and  
she gave him hers only because she felt like it. "I think you missed a spot- a bit lower."  
Not once did she offer a word of thanks, and she knew from his hushed tones and gentle  
touches he was trying to seduce her. She didn't care, as long as she got her massage. She  
was careful not to show an interest, though. True, he was a nice looking man- hell, who  
was she kidding? He was hot! - but still, the last thing Shannon needed was to give some  
poor guy false hopes and have him following her around the island like a lost puppy dog  
until the rescue boat came. And anyway, she thought, we won't be here long. "Did you  
hear me? You missed a spot, a bit lower."

"Hearing you loud out and clear, Shannon." was the only response coming from the man  
that did massages for payment. You could ask him any kind of massage; a normal one,  
EVEN an erotic one! Be it with whipped cream, shaving cream and whatnot. Jan didn't slide  
his hands immediately down to the spot she had requested this time, oh no... he slowly, as  
if torturingly, moved his hands to the requested spot of the moment. As he did this, he  
felt a twinge in his pants. Oh god... I admit, she's handsome... but right here, on this  
ISLAND! Jan thought, counter-thinking a tactic to make his male instrument lose the  
hardness.

"Finally," said Shannon as he reached the spot she had asked him to get. Instead of being  
grateful that he had stopped helping others to give her a massage, she just seemed to get  
more demanding with each touch of his hand. She sighed, feeling the tension in her back  
slowly worked out by this guy's hands. He was gorgeous and he had magic fingers.  
Maybe in another place and time... nah, Shannon thought, who was she kidding. HE  
wasn't her type. He was too... nice. "I think that's good," she said softly as his hands  
worked over her skin. She didn't exactly want him to stop, because the massage felt good,  
but she didn't want this guy getting too hung up on her. "Thanks."

After hearing what she had said, Jan slowly took his hands off of her skin. His kneecaps  
were still on the sand, and he was relieved he had managed to keep his raging hormones  
in check. Yes, she is beautiful... but a little too demanding and ungrateful. "That's..." Jan  
began, as if he was still in his massage salon that was simply called "Jan's Massage  
Experience", and was now demanding a small fee just like she was a regular customer. He  
snapped out of his reverie. "Anytime, Shan, you know where to find me. It's not like I'll be  
far away from you..."

"Great," said Shannon, thinking that was just what she wanted to avoid. She turned her  
head to look at him, thinking she should at least say it was nice meeting him, but she  
didn't. Instead, she nodded toward the plane, where some people were still scrambling  
around, looking for help. "Look's like Jan the humanitarian is still needed over there. Why  
don't they just stop screaming and sit and wait for the damned rescue boat! All this  
yelling is really beginning to get on my nerves." Almost as an afterthought, she reached  
behind her and untied the string on her bikini top, lying on her stomach with her breasts  
securely hidden beneath her as the bikini top was now open completely. The last thing  
she needed was to get tan lines. She looked up and saw that Jan was still there. She  
thought about saying something, but instead just sighed and turned her head the other  
way.

Jan felt like taking the stage of the screaming marathon this time. Saying things like  
'WHAT ARE YOU DOING!' to this woman who made Jan crazy with every move that she  
made. It was like she was the one pulling his strings. "Well, Shan, sweet dreams." Jan  
whispered in her ear. . . again so seductive. Then he suddenly had the nerve to glide his  
hand over one of Shannon's ass cheeks! As if he had been ordered to massage those too!  
As if he wanted to check if Shannon Rutherford has his favorite type of ass cheeks in that  
perfect package that was her body... In this other reality that now seemed so far away, he  
had had taken requests to massage those orbs as well. He stood up, realizing his mistake.  
"I'll see if I can get them to quiet down so you can have your beauty sleep." Jan said.

Shannon held back a smile as she shivered from the feel of his hot breath on her earlobe  
as he whispered in her ear. Then she felt him touch her ass cheeks. Shannon nearly  
jumped ten feet, clutching her bikini top to her breasts, covering them, as she bolted  
straight up and looked at him. "What the hell was that!" she demanded. She saw  
instantly that he hadn't meant to offend her, and SHannon had to admit- to herself, at  
least- that she had liked his intimate touch. Not that she would ever say THAT out loud.  
"That'd be great," she said sarcastically, lying back down on her stomach. She didn't look  
up at him as she added, "The rescue boat has a signal I'm sure, but if they don't they could  
follow that noise here all the way from LA." She knew she sounded like a snotty, stuck up  
princess, but she didn't care. Was it really too much to ask for a little bit of peace and quiet?

As the man formally known as owner of Jan's Massage Experience listened to Shannon's  
outburst, Jan almost wanted to grin back and look at her like he didn't understand why she  
was reacting this way. But instead, Jan just apologized for doing that. Then Jan walked  
away from her, up to her brother Boone, who, unlike a certain sister, WAS cooperative in  
helping provide others with their safety.

Shannon closed her eyes as the guy finally took a walk. She saw him head over  
to Boone and sighed, thinking she should probably get up and say something, but she was  
too comfortable to move. Let them introduce themselves, she thought as she closed  
her eyes and let the sun's rays seep into her skin. Boone saw this man walking towards  
him, and instantly approached him. He wasn't blind- he had seen this guy with his hands  
all over his sister. "What were you doing over there, giving her a massage when all  
these people need help?" he demanded angrily. "An just why did you have your hands all over  
my sister in the first place?" he could not help but ask.

"I'm sorry... but your sister... she's totally not the cooperative person I thought her to be.  
First I thought of having a talk with her, maybe provoke her in helping out, but alas, the  
conversation ended in a request on her behalf. A massage." Jan said, holding up a hand  
when Boone wanted to get something off his mind. "I'm sorry... I think I ran into you on  
the way to the rest room on the plane... Boone was it? I tried getting her to help us, but all  
she wanted was a massage... it was the best idea to make her... well, quiet for a bit." Jan  
explained to Shannon's brother. If Jan had had any sisters, he was sure of one thing.. the  
same thing Boone had just done and that was standing up for his sister.

"Jan, right?" said Boone, extending his hand. Then Boone looked over at Shannon and  
shook his head. "You seem like a nice enough guy, so I may as well be straight with you-  
Shannon is only interested in Shannon. Always has been, always will be. If you expect any  
more from her, you'll be very disappointed." He paused a moment, looking at his sister  
selfishly lying there on the beach only a few feet from the tail section of the plane where  
so many people had died. "Don't get me wrong, I love her, Jan. She's my sister, and I'll  
always love her. But I don't delude myself, either. I know who she is, and she's definitely  
not the type to help anyone unless she gets something out of it." He turned back to Jan,  
and smiled. "Come on, man, let's go see if anyone else needs any help."

Jan smiled even in these circumstances. "Yes, Jan Sanders." He told his buddy that had not  
been much of a stranger since ever meeting him on the plane. . . that, ironically enough,  
now was in pieces on the beach. Jan wasn't going to tell Shannon's brother what kind of  
effect she had had on him, so Jan decided to keep this man as a friend in his book. Of  
course add Shannon's name in his black book... okay, imaginary black book now. "Right  
with you, Boone." Jan said as he began to help some other people that DID need assistance.

Shannon lingered on the beach, still not moving to help at all. Every so often she looked  
up and saw Boone and Jan working together to pull people from the wreckage.  
'Too bad I'm not going to be here long enough to get to know him,' she thought. 'It  
actually might have been worth it.'

Then, it happened. Boone got a piece of the planewreckage and Jan immediately tried to get  
him out from underneath. Jack immediately was on the scene and took him into a specially made  
tent for injured people.

Jan was amazed, totally astonished! Apparently Miss Cleopatra 2005 had done a complete 180 and became more concerned. Okay, she was Boone's sister, that was understandable. But after this, Jan hoped that Shannon would get more concerned for others on this island as well. "Don't worry, Shannon." Jan said as he felt a connection being made... her hand had reached for his... shoulder. "I know he will okay."

Shannon cried, holding on to Jan. She had teased him about wanting to help, but now she saw how important his help was. Boone would have been dead if he hadn't helped him. She looked up at him, tears streaking her face, and forced a smile. "Thanks to you, he'll be ok," she said softly. "Thank you, Jan." For the first time since she had met the man she called humanitarian of the year, her tone was filled with genuine gratitude.

Jan's left hand was against Shannon's back, while he contemplated drying her tears with his other hand. Why was he so afraid of intimate contact? He had been the owner of a massage salon for Christ's sake! So, slowly, Jan's right hand dabbed away her tears. "Anytime, Shannon." Jan said to her as he suddenly felt his other hand pull her more closer...

Shannon pressed herself against him, tears spilling from her eyes again. She was so glad he was here to hold her. In all of this, possibly losing Boone, she couldn't handle it if she was alone. She looked up, moving closer to him, her eyes filled with a gratitude she couldn't verbalize. She looked deep into his eyes, feeling a connection she couldn't explain, when the sheet covering the area where Boone was opened, and Jack came out, his expression serious. He looked first and Shannon. "He'll be ok, but he lost a lot of blood, from the bone protruding from his leg. He needs some rest." He turned to Jan, and offered his hand to shake. "He would have died under the pressure of that thing quickly. You saved his life." He added, to both of them, "You can see him for a minute, but then you have to go and let him rest, ok?"

"I was only there to lift it off of him, Doc. You did the medical mojo." Jan then looked at Shannon. "Would you like to see him first? Since you're his sister after all?" Jan asked. Whatever the outcome, Jan would just let her go first since she was related to him.

Shannon nodded, and entered the tarp slowly. Boone saw her and smiled, then looked behind her. "Shannon," he said softly, as she took hold of his hand. "I'll be fine, Shannon, don't worry," he said softly, smiling to her. "Just try to help, ok, in my place? Please," he told her, his expression genuine. "You see now, it really does matter, Shannon, what we do right now, whether a rescue boat comes in two hours or two days or two weeks. People need your help now, Shannon." She smiled and nodded, "I promise, Boone," she whispered. He smiled back at her. "I need to see him- Jan," he said softly. "I'll get him," said Shannon, then you sir need your rest," she said, kissing his forehead and stepping outside. She looked at Jan. "He's asking to see you."

Jan nodded at Shannon, apparently seeing her change in behaviour... It's not like we're that far away from eachother, so I don't have to say, I'll see you later. Jan thought. He put his hand on Shannon and gave her a quiet hug, before he entered the tarp just as slowly as Shannon had done. "How... are you holding up?" Jan asked as he saw Boone laying there.

Boone looked up at him, and smiled. "Jan, thank you," he said quickly, as he saw his new friend enter his 'room'. He motioned for Jan to come closer, and looked at him seriously. "Jan, I need something from you- a favor," he whispered, looking at Jan with a look that betrayed how serious this really was.

Jan nodded and got closer to his friend. He sat down on his knees and regarded his wounded comrade. "Anything, Boone." He knew how serious that was from the look he was giving Jan Sanders. Immediately Jan had had a thought about what he needed from Jan... it probably had something to do about his sister. But what?

"Jan, I need you to look after her," Boone said, nodding towards the outside of the tarp. "I know she seems tough, even insensitive, but she needs to be cared for. I try, always, to take care of her, but now..." his voice trailed off as he looked down. "This is serious, Jan, my injury. I asked Jack not to be completely honest with her. The truth is, it's going to be a long time before the bone sets and I'm even close to recovering." He paused taking a breath, feeling fatigue slowly setting in. "I need you to look after her, I know it's a lot to ask, but please Jan," he said, looking at his new friend. "I trust you."

"I am NOT going to lose a friend I met on a recently crashed plane!" Jan said, a little too loudly. He had thought that Jack had worked his medical mojo to get Boone better again, patched up. Boy, was he dead wrong! "I will look after her, Boone, but you gotta promise me. . . that you're not going to succumb to death. Promise me and I'll do what you ask of me."

"Jack did what he could," he said softly, reaching out to his new friend. "I promise you I'll be ok," he said, seeing the worry on this man's face. They had just seen so many people die, he understood why Jan wouldn't want to see any more death. "Just please, look after her, protect her," he said. "It's not easy, I know, but thank you Jan. I know you can do it."

Jan reached out and gripped his friend's hand softly. "I promise you." Jan said as his hand left their entwined hands. He slowly got up and looked at his friend for one last time. "I won't tell Shannon any of this."

"Thank you," said Boone, as Jack came back in. "Jan, we need to let him rest now," he whispered, not wanting to break it up, but only looking out for his patient. Boone forced a smile. "I'm ok, Jan, I promise. Thank you," he said, letting his friend's hand go.

Jan looked and listened to Jack, keeping himself in check not to glare at the Captain Doctor Jack of the Island. "I'm already going. Good luck, my friend." Jan said as he left the tarp as slowly as he had entered. You just gotta fight it! For me, for Shannon... for yourself, Boone Jan thought as he met Shannon again.

Shannon watched as Jan came out of the tarp and headed towards her. She reached out to him, her eyes filled with worry for her brother. "Is he alright?" she asked, her eyes filling with tears again.

Okay, first selfish, now teary-eyed 24/7? Jan wondered. "He's... going to be okay, Shannon." Jan said to her after she had reached out to him. "Everything's going to be fine. Right now he just needs his rest." He explained to Boone's sister.

Shannon nodded. "Thanks," she said softly, letting go of Jan and sitting on the beach for a moment, looking out at the water. She remembered her promise to Boone, that she would help, and she would keep it. But at that moment, Shannon felt a fear like she had never known, one brought on by the thought of losing her brother, the most important person in her life. She stared out at the water, as quiet sobs filled her chest. She didn't want to be alone.

Jan sat down in the sand, watching this woman that had changed so much in a couple of hours... how did it happen so fast? As Jan had heard from Boone, now Shannon would help all that she could. The reward would be... getting a rejuvenated brother back instead. "Penny... or, more like massage for your thoughts?" Jan asked, more in a jokingly way than any other way.

Shannon chuckled, and smiled genuinely for a moment at Jan's joke. "I'm just scared. Boone's always been there for me, to take care of me. I don't know what I would do if..." her voice trailed off, not wanting to say out loud what she was facing in her mind. She looked at Jan, looked into his eyes, and said softly. "I'm scared. I don't want to be alone."

"I know I'm not your brother, Shannon... but if you don't mind... I could take over his role for awhile? Just until he gets better?" Jan asked her, staring at her beautiful visage again. He slowly got up from the sand, still wearing the pants but no shirt or sweater, and made his way over to Shannon, who he had seen turning around to listen to him. As if Jan had been replaced by an imposter, he actually wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

Shannon pressed herself against him, wrapping her own arms around him, taking comfort in the warmth of his arms around her. "I'd like that," she said softly, secure in his arms.

Goddess Aphrodite, could this feeling get any better? Jan Sanders had had a couple of ideas, but didn't want to rush things that soon. "Then we shall do that, starting from this time, this day." Jan said to her, as he looked into her eyes and slowly felt a smile covering up his face. Then... Jan actually felt his lips going to hers... and instead, kissed her on her cheek.

Shannon closed her eyes, seeing his lips moving towards hers... then was surprised when the gently kissed her cheek instead. "Maybe not exactly like a brother, but this works for me," she said with a soft smile, holding him close. Something inside her told her she could trust this man like she trusted Boone. She looked up at him and smiled. "So," she said, "what can I do to help?" She laughed a bit and added, "Considering I'm still in my bikini, getting dressed might be a good first step."

A grin spread on Jan's features. "Getting dressed is a very good first step..." Jan said to her. "Let's see if we can stop any more casualties, and maybe find some inventory of supplies that we can use for later." Jan said to her. . . as he once again basked in her beauty. Jan dismissed the thought that had sprang to mind after hearing her say 'maybe not exactly like a brother'.

TBC


End file.
